Recent rains helped stimulate crop growth and cool, cloudy conditions allowed needed moisture to stay in the soil last week, according to the latest Iowa Crop Progress and Condition report from the USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service.

Farmers had 3.4 suitable days for fieldwork last week, which included planting, spraying, side dressing, and chopping cover crops. Corn planting is virtually complete with emergence at 87%, five days ahead of the five-year average. Corn condition is rated 81% good to excellent. For soybeans 93% has been planted, 12 days ahead of normal. Farmers in southeast Iowa have just over one-quarter of their soybean crop remaining to be planted. Soybeans emerged reached 72%, nine days ahead of average. The first soybean rating of the season showed 0% very poor, 1% poor, 23% fair, 60% good, and 16% excellent.